I had read that it is best to have them on a lamb and rice diet because of the kidney stones problem. I was also wondering about winter feeding. How much do you reduce food because of lack of excercise.

Also what about winter and how cold is too cold? Do you have to get a coat for them?

By the way obdience training is great for her!!!!! She has seemed to calm down alot. I thought I knew about dogs till I got her. But what a wonderful creature and I wouldn't trade her for the world!

Hi, I think you may be the person with the liver spotted baby. I too have a liver spotted baby, well he's 2 now but hasn't acted anymore mature than at 1 year old. Winters so far have been fine. I find Dal's to be very hearty and tough....I do have mucklucks for him, that I do suggest to purchase if you live in a wintry state or province. His feet were a mess come close to spring two years ago. Salt and ice are a nightmare for paws...
Dal's are great pals. My guy is loving and protective, very sensitive, and very athletic...things I like in al dogs and people too...
If anymore thoughts or questions, would love to chat Dals...

Oh yeah, about the diet...Dals apparently are tricky...It sounds like you've done your homework...I was told that kidney stone development is largely due to being inherited...since you're girl was a stray, I'm sure that her lineage is unkown...You can go to the vet to get a urine analysis done, which, I think will indicate whether or not she will be susseptible to this problem...
My Dal does not eat lamb...too gassy though I don't doubt that it is a good source of protein for Dals. What to look for are for proteins lower in purine...ie skinless chicken, turkey...My Dal eats a BARF diet...you can find more on the web....

Talk about a diet with the dals!!! Mine ate a tensor bandage and had to have major surgery!!! Then had a reaction to the sutures..which then led to her bleed so badly they had to take a blood test to see if they had to transfuse!!! Little Beggar scared the pants off me!
She is just starting to get back on her feet.
I love the Dals attitude. i have a border collie X Dalmation. Her personality is more on the Border side though

Yep she is a liver spotted...People freak out and asked what she is crossed with. When I say that she is a pure bred. They just love her.

You know whats also amazing how small kids who can hardly say Mommy and Daddy..scream when they see her "Dalmation!!!" They love her to bits. Fortunately she is great with kids.

Her training has been on hold because of surgery so I imagine we will have to start over in about a week.

By the way does yours do the Elvis lip? Mine cracks me up when she does it...course I love Elvis lol!

Holy Cow! I know exactly what you're talking about. The lip curl...It is sooo cute! His name is Pele, my internet name is usually spots on pele, only one word....Aww man, tensor bandage? I hope she's ok...I'm sure she is...Yeah, Dals and kids....I didn't realize how many comments a Dal owner gets from children...The liver spots get the adults inquiring...Sometimes I do wish I could just walk my Pele, but it's overall nice...People do think he's half pointer (GSP)...

How is training of your Dals? from people who i've spoken to about Dals that never owned them... I hear that they are hyper, difficult to train, and just plain dumb.

Whereas actual owners tell me that they are very intelligent 'complex' thinkers, and rather than hyper, just energetic and playful. i've also read these more positive things over and over.

from actual owners... what differences have you noticed when it comes to training Dals over other breeds? What types of work of your Dals been trained for (i.e., i also read that they have been trained as gun/hunting dogs).

Hi there, no Dals are not dumb...they are extremely active and playful but not in the "full contact" way that, say, Labs are known for...Dals can be aloof with stranger...which isn't all that bad...I know that Pele (my Dal) would never just walk off with anyone...Only a hand full of people in his life could come up to him, pet him, leash him and go...It's sort of comforting knowing that he has "eyes for the one's he loves" As for training, I think Dals are the same as pretty much all sporting dogs...I know Dals are classsified as Non-sporting but only because their sport came into non-existence. If you're firm, consistent, don't yell or hit your dog, he will be fine...Pele is no obedience class star though...but he does the stuff that we really enforce...like wait for his food while sitting until instructed to eat. He doesn't jump up on furniture or people, he heals, comes (usually), sits and stays and that's fine by me...I can fetch my own newspaper or get my own beer from the fridge...Dals can be gun dogs...I've seen GSP's and Weimies flushing, retrieving, and setting and Pele could do all that, I have no doubt...But I have no interest....

Dals are far from dumb. In fact i think they are quite Brilliant. Mine needs to be shown a trick once and she knows it.
But then she has had traumatic experiences before we got her. She is incredibly fearful of streets and trucks but loves to chase cars? We found out where she was found from the pound..industrial area. That explained alot to us and also gave the trainer ideas. She has calmed quite a bit. But she has been on R&R for past week and a half.
Dals are not for small kids!!!!! I stress this!!!! They are hyper and playful....when they get going they forget there are people there and knock over things and people. In a controlled enviroment dals will love kids and be best friends.
Dals are also nippers. More to get your attention and not always painful but there are times where a nip in the butt is alittle painful lol!

I have a border colliex dal Now there is difference here. the border is very cunning..always thinking...always checking..Where the Dal is confident..but boy oh boy something goes wrong or you step in her territory its every body for themselves.

They are a kind, sometimes clumzy clown that will give their all to please you and keep you safe.

When she is fully trained she will be my running partner....and my just all around pal!

I'm 99% sure i'm getting a Dal... but now i'm feeling even better because i grew up a duck hunter with Labs and Springers. Choco labs are really great and it seems to me that a Dal is similar but obviously different, in good ways

Amaruq is right about Dals nipping...They do and I'm glad that Amaruq sees it for what it is...I think that the bad reputation Dals recieve is from misconceptions...A nip for attention turns into a full blown attack through rumors...Pele is good with kids, he would rather bark and leave the area than knock anyone over if disinterested and he never gets wildly excited unless it involves his soccer ball....Oh yeah another reason I think Dals may get a bad rap from non-owners is because they are very protective and make great guard dogs...Alll it takes is a couple of aquaintences who are a bit dog shy and are not able to manage with the "settling" period (which is about 5-8 minutes for Pele), can't make it past my our front room because of fear and all of a sudden, I own a vicous dog...Please....
Dustin07- I got my Dal from breeders in Squamish who are no longer breeding...I grew up in BC so seeing you're in Washington state, I know there are a few breeders north of you....Being from the Pac NorWest, and a dog person, does that make you a Washington Huskies fan or are you a WaSU Cougar fan?

I thought i was a dawg.... but when all my buddies from High school became Cougs... so I guess I route for both, and when they play eachother, i chose not to watch

I'm not over concerned about nipping (not that i'm ignoring it, I'm just not 'offended' by it). a Dal isn't a 'small' dog. but it's far from huge, so for those people who have issues with a energetic dog like that.... well, maybe they'd best stick with toy poodles. lol.

My lab that i hunt with (he is a family dog, and i moved out of my parents house a year go, so he stayed home) is 135lbs. luckily he greats you with his tongue rather than paws though.

I've been in contact with a few breeders. Heres the scoop. I just bought a house, but my in laws want me to 'house sit' their farm for the next 1-2 years. GREAT opportunity, but i was hoping to get a puppy ASAP so i could house train it on MY carpet, before moving it to their house (not to mention chewing, pawing on the door, etc) but it turns out they want me to move over there in November... maybe end of October. That really doesn't leave room for training a puppy at ALL.

so instead my wife and I are exploring the idea of adopting a old Dal who may be somewhat established, but still young enough to become apart of the family.

*** and a funny sidenote... I was at the humane society (looking for homeless Dals of course) and saw a 5 month old mini-aussi sheppard. the owners notes continuely talked about house this dog was 'aggressive' and 'attacked' just about EVERYTHING. I almost adopted the dog right then. COME ON FOLKS!! 5 months old, he put everything in his mouth, duh!! i thought it was funny because the staff had circled everything bad the owner had said and wrote "normal puppy behavior" next to it....cute dog though***

Hey Dustin07....great choices of options...an option to adopt or raise a pup and move to a farm for a while??!?!? Well I gotta tell you, Dal pups are very clean...we got our Pele at 10 weeks old, he began paper training and we decided to train him right away to go outside...no lie, it took about 4 days for him to prove to us that he was fully trained....in that period, it was maybe 3 pees and definately 1 poop...nothing to worry about....it's all about scheduling...And to adopt, that would be great for a Dallie, and I know there are quite a few out there....So hey, whatever you do, you can get yourself a great Dal...Just hope that you're Lab can handle being 2nd command, lol....
Oh yeah, I would definately think of myself a DAWG...Great campus....Great Stadium...Great team...

wow, so these dogs ARE quite intelligent, huh? I'm finding myself more and more impressed by them. One of the things i've picked up on, is that since they are not bred as a particular hound they may not be a 'natural' bird dog, or tracker, etc.... however, since they were bred as a 'work dog' they are very flexible in learning lots of different stuff. i'm very excited about getting one!!

What kind of food do you give Pele? the lowest protien content i saw at the normal feed store I go to is 21%, that was the lamb and rice...

Hello..yeah Pele eats what is known as the B.A.R.F. diet (biologically appropriate raw foods or bones and raw food)...He eats primarily chicken and mashed fruits and veggies...He loves raw beef bones and will eat a bit a fish and turkey...We do bake sweet potoatoes and yams for him....Actually my partner/girlfriend knows more about it as she researched it for about 4 months before Pele went into transition from kibble to his current diet...It's not that expensive and once yer into the rhythm of preparing the food...it's cheaper and easier than feeding a human baby....He has been on the diet since he was 7 months old
Anyways you can do a google search for BARF diet and you will definately be able to find out more...The low protein thing, I think (I'll ask my girlie when she gets home), is a myth...It's actually the purine levels in the protiens or meat that may cause unrine tract and kidney problems...That's why we feed Pele chicken because it is one of the protiens lower in purine, he gets fish once in awhile because it is actually very high in purines...
Pele has had a urine analysis done, he's fine and we will do it again when he's 5, then 8, and so on ....
Raw foods, I think is the way to go...I've come accross a few articles about what actually goes into commercial pet foods..nasty stuff...some stuff found has been like non edible stuff like gum boots or something!!!
Talk to you later, dude...

cool, thanks for the info. is he inside the house very much alone? I waw thinking if i got a male i might have to set up some outdoor arrangement for him during the day to help with kidney stones... but maybe i'm a bit paranoid??

at the very latest, i'll have my Dal in December (what a wait!) but until then i'm looking for puppies that are already available, and taking advantage of the opportunity to get supplies (and research)

Hey man, no, I would keep him inside, kennel him for a while if need be...Dals like to be indoors if not playing....they love the creature comforts of home...blankets, fireplaces, fans(in the summer), etc...If I walk Pele for over 1/2 hour in the morn, he will be fine for about 8 hours if need be...Kidney stones, I think, just make peing very difficult and painful....Always leave fresh water, they need that...and seriously they are clean beasts...
I forgot to mention...Apparently 1/3 of Dals are born deaf....They do not aquire deafness (unless it age related)...so when you go look at Dals, snap your fingers or whistle to see if he can hear...If yer really considered, you can get him checked...Epilepsy is also very common...My sister's in-laws and a neighbor of ours (has 2 Dals) owned epileptic Dals...A good friend of mine had a childhood Dal named Blaze (perfect name) who also had epilepsy...So look out for a good one...it will be worth it...
Later dude...

i hadn't heard about the Epilepsy deal. How long ago was your friend raising 'Blaze?'

I am familiar with the stones and the deafness though. weird. it really seems like Dals are a great dog, and because of their many greatnesses, you have to watch for a couple of shortcomings.

how has shedding been with yours? i've heard it's abundant, but sometimes people overreact to things... I mean, if shedding is present, big deal, but if it's a like a whole new coat of fur every day........ some people would make a big deal out of finding 5 new hairs on their pants or something, but that doesn't bug me.

I think a long time back one of my family's English Springer Spaniel pups ended up being epileptic. I just remember she had problems with seizures and stuff. is there a way to check for that, or do you just take your new friend home and pray for the best?

Hey man, my friend had Blaze for a long time....I think he was about 5-8 when his family got him...late 70's early 80's....I'm sure the epilepsy is a result of poor breeding practices...I'm sure you know that because of the movies (101 Dals) there was overbreeding goin' on and alot a bad dogs produced....not to the Dals fault of his own...Make sure the parents are sound if purchasing a pup...If the mom's got a nice character and the breeders seem reliable, chances are the pups will be good....
Shedding....oh yeah, they shed a ton....we also get them stuck in our feet like little splinters....hair gets everywhere and vacuuming could be done daily around here, but once/twice a week is fine by me...talk to ya later, dude

Really any dog can have epilipsy. We had a mutt and he had it very bad...at that time meds were not around for dogs and the poor little beggar suffered.

The shedding is really not a problem for me either. I have another mutt and she sheds like you wouldn't beleive!!! Get a rubber tooth comb for the short hair breeds as it doesn't hurt nor scare them.

I agree that it is nice to know the breeder and know what basically your pup will be like. But don't be discouraged from a rescued Dal too as most of them want to be loved and would appreciate a great owner. My therory: You take your chances with anything.

You were asking about the tracking. Lizzy my Dal constantly has her nose down and sniffing what ever. She tracks her toys down...I imagine that it would be easy to train for scent???? My borderx dal is one of the greatest retrievers ever. People marvel at how she goes and when she comes back she will throw whatever at you. She loves to retrive. I think its all in the way you train. Get the dog used to the duck dummy.....or if you are hunting now keep some of the feathers for scent..and make a duck dummy. Put it in a bag (plastic) till you are realy to use it.

I have a dal her name is spot and she is 13 years old she was the 1st dog I have ever had and I can tell you from expieriance that dals are one of the most caring dogs you will ever come across they are a little bit shy so they have been called skitish but thats not true they are good dogs for just about any one

we've had ours for about 7 or 8 weeks now, she is a 4 year old foster child. we are her 5th care takers!! when we got her she was WAY over weight (has lost about 15lbs already and looks great now!) an as you can imagine, she was a nervous wreck! she was house-trained, but she didn't care. all that meant was that she new when she was wrong, doh! she's become one of the family though and is doing quite well.

HOWEVER to answer some of your questions... we have a large detached garage that we keep her in when we are gone... just don't trust Lilly in the house by herself, she likes garbage. she has been in there both w/ and w/out a coat. She does fine both ways, but since she never fights putting the coat on, and never trys to take it off herself, i put it on whenever possible.

i can't answer the less exercise question because she was so fat before from never doing anything. even the last people who had her said she hated the out doors. she only went out when nature called, then ran back in. she still does that, but now loves to go out on the farm with me, so she gets lots of exercise.

that said... the regular food we have for her suggests around 2 to 2 1/4 cups a day for her. so i give her 3/4 cups of dry dog food in the morning with a warmed up 1/2 can of dog food mixed in. she loves it and it doesn't look like she is gaining or losing weight anymore so i think the mixture works.

I think Lamb and rice is a good rule of thumb, but from what i've experienced, and read, and heard, i think most important is just making sure your Dal always has access to water and can go to the bathroom when needed.

Her first owner had a male Dal named Byron... so when she got this one, she named her Byron. actually, Byron the III. i know what you are thinking

the last foster family she was with thought that was odd, and started calling her Lilly, so we figured rather than confusing her, we would just leave it as Lilly. it matches her well now anyways.

My parents bought an English Springer Spaniel pup when i was a kid, and she is now on the verge of passing on... it made me realize how much i wished we had taken more pics. so you can be sure i will get lots of pics of Lilly to post!!